Shauna Fiorentino has served the tristate area for 24 years; more than 20 of those years as a registered and licensed Occupational Therapist. She passed the rigorous certification to become an upper extremity specialist on her first attempt with ease more than fifteen years ago. In 2010, Shauna founded the Hand Institute LLC which is the only clinic in the region devoted entirely to the upper quarter (consisting of the cervical spine, shoulder, elbow, wrist and hand.) She currently is the only full-time practicing upper extremity specialist in a 60-mile radius; this has made The Hand Institute the facility most trusted by physicians and patients. Shauna has the ingenuity and proficiency to fabricate any splint from static (no moving parts) to dynamic (moving parts). This has proven valuable to doctors who would like their patients to have splints made immediately. As the only therapist in the area with this skill set, she is available to do so Monday through Friday and walk-ins are accepted.

Devoted to her staff and patients, she considers continuing education a priority and a necessity. Her own internships have been with some of the finest rehabilitation facilities such as Rancho Los Amigos in Los Angeles and The Curtis National Hand Center in Baltimore, MD. To stay at the top of her field Shauna has completed extended tutorials with some of the best hand and upper extremity surgeons in the country such as Dr. Meals of UCLA and Dr. Osterman of the Philadelphia Hand Center.

Over the years, Shauna has gone above and beyond to develop her manual skills understanding that therapists must be hands-on rather than merely prescribing a set of exercises. Therefore, she completed a year-long certification course in therapeutic massage in 1998 and has since been certified in Kinesiotaping, myofascial release, and Active Release Techniques.

Giving back to her peers is part of Shauna’s fabric. She has lectured locally and regionally on various topics. For over a decade Shauna taught “Introduction to the Hand Therapy” at Allegany College of Maryland and she continues to provide a continuing education course annually on that material. Shauna has become a mentor to therapists from other facilities as well as her own. These therapists frequently contact her for advice when they have questions regarding the upper extremity. Shauna gladly extends herself when called upon because she wants what is best for the patients. It is her belief that ancillary services such as Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy and Speech Therapy are stronger when they work together.

Despite offers in much larger urban areas, Shauna remains in the Cumberland area and cites the relationships that she has built as the reason behind it. “After practicing here for so long, many patients have become like family, I’d do anything for them. There is no other place I’d rather be.”